Not Me
by TheG-Ghaladron
Summary: Adrien leads a dual life. Surely this must have an effect on him internally? Especially with his upbringing? *Cracks knuckles* here we go!
1. She Knew

**A/N:** Heyyyy! Thank you all so much for your support and encouragement on my first fic. I honestly was not expecting such an overwhelming response. It's thanks to you guys that I was inspired to write this, drawing from some of my own experiences of internal duality. Bit more angst than the last one, but hopefully just as good.

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She knew. I knew she knew. I don't know how she knew, but she knew. It didn't matter how she knew, all that mattered was she did. She knew.

I went through most of the day undisturbed, but the whole time I could feel two deep blue pinpricks on me, even if I couldn't see them. It took till after school, as I reached for the handle of the car, that I felt a hand brush mine.

"Adrien…" The voice was unmistakably hers and it's not like it was going to be someone else's anyway. I turned to face her, and was surprised to see tears in the corners of her eyes

"Marinette are you ok?" Despite my dread and knowledge for what I knew was coming next, the concern was real. I didn't expect this kind of reaction.

"Yeah I'm fine, it's just…" She pauses to wipe her eyes "I had a question to ask you." I knew what the question was. I had been up all night thinking of how to answer it. Thinking about this, I had realised to a casual observer, let's say Chloe, it would look like she was about to ask me out. Like that would happen. I doubt she'd like Adrien Agreste. I push those thoughts to a mental corner and focus on what was happening now.

"Ask away" I kept a casual face, she didn't need to know I knew she knew. Another benefit of being a model. Another facet of me. Nevertheless, a pit opened in my stomach as if I'd used my own power on myself

"Are you…" She catches her breath "Are you Cat Noir?"

I replied simply "No, I am Adrien Agreste."

"But…" She seemed more confused than I had anticipated "I thought I…"

My tone gained an edge which I did not appreciate myself and as such doubt she did either. "Adrien Agreste is not Cat Noir. That's not me." I brushed her aside and turned away, ducking into the car without looking at her. In truth that was to hide the tears appearing in my own eyes. What had I done.

The worst part of the whole affair was that I hadn't lied. That truth hurt me more than any akuma attack could. I'm not Cat Noir, he was just someone I became every now and then. I was just Adrien Agreste, but who was he? Teen supermodel? Fencing expert? Middle school student? Whatever he was, he certainly wasn't a superhero.

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 **A/N:** Yeah I agree. This feels like a weird place to end, but I honestly couldn't think of anything else to say for this chapter. Chapter 2 should be up by the end of the week and it will be longer and deeper explore Adrien's view of himselves. Overall this should be about 5-6 chapters, hopefully it all goes well. Again, check out my Miraculous Roleplay Discord Server to hang out with more creative fans. It's on Discord .me at /miraculousrp

Completely unrelated but funny anyway, I accidentally copy pasted this chapter into the name of the doc as opposed to the text section itself, so now the doc name is 548 words


	2. My Father's Hand on My Shoulder

**A/N:** Sorry about how short the other chapter was. Hopefully this one more than makes up for it. I now have a good plan for where this story will go, and will continue working on it across the week. I hope this chapter is more impressive than it's predecessor! Now, onto the story…

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"Plagg I'm not in the mood" Plagg was trying hard to cheer him up, but in typical Plagg style it was by attempting to feed him Camembert cheese.

"Is it really that bad? _One_ person _might_ know and you told them that they were wrong." He pushed up against my forlorn cheek, trying quite literally to get me to look up at life.

"That's not the problem, Plagg. The problem is me." I clapped my hands over my face and flopped back onto my bed. "Who am I?" I mumbled through my hands. I used to know, I think. Was I ever sure? When did this all start? Was it when I met Plagg and Cat Noir was born? Or earlier… Was there even such a person as Adrien Agreste? My train of thought was interrupted by a knock at my door

"Adrien?" Nathalie's voice echoes into his large expansive room, enough to hold a small congregation. Who knows maybe it did, unless I could sort this out. "It's 5 o'clock." I sighed in frustration as I remembered. Time for Adrien, the son of Gabriel Agreste, to head out. I grabbed my umbrella and made sure my ring was firmly on my finger.

For once my father was out of his office, but you couldn't tell by looking at him. His hands were behind his back, the right one curled as if holding a pen, the left with the thumb across in a manner such as which one might hold a book open in the air. I shuddered at that thought again, my own father akumatized, and it had been my fault. Hah, the bad son, might as well add it to the list.

"Adrien, do you seriously plan on attending the gala in those clothes?" My father sounded disdainful, at least he was consistent though. I was in my normal casual outfit, black T-shirt with three coloured stripes, an off-white button-up over that, blue jeans and my dad's designer sneakers. Sadly I'd forgotten that when an actor plays multiple roles, they have to wear multiple costumes.

"Sorry father, I was preoccupied." I returned to my room and picked up the tuxedo that had been left hanging in my closet, another of my father's designs, the bowtie resembling a butterfly. In many ways it was quite attractive, the black bringing out my green eyes, but tonight it was a symbol. A symbol of who I was. No one. Adrien Agreste was just a name, he didn't exist.

Tonight, at the Grand Palais, was a fundraiser sponsored by my father and the mayor. 'The Miraculous Fund' they called it, raising money to support Paris' greatest protectors. Honestly, I did feel a real sense of pride as I saw the giant ice sculptures of the two of us, but I immediately scolded myself for it, reminding myself that I wasn't him.

My role for the night was to play the good son, stand by my father and be a friendly and welcoming face. After all, this was an important event politically too when both one of the leading business owners and the mayor were hosting together. This also meant I had to play the good friend of the mayor's daughter, a certain Chloe Bourgeois. Somehow this both filled me with dread and happiness. Despite all of her negative points. Scratch that. Despite all of _her_ , she was still a childhood friend and knew me more than anyone.

By the time we had arrived, the place was nearly full with tuxes and evening dresses. Some familiar faces stood out. Jagged Stone, Prince Ali (Who had notably brought rosy-cheeked Rose with him, a glaring blast of pink amongst a dark forest) and Nadja Chamack, who couldn't actually be seen from where I was but was unmistakably recognisable by her catchphrase of "Don't be bemused, it's just the news. I'm Nadja Chamack." My train of thought is interrupted by the noise of someone clearing their throat loudly and a hand on my shoulder.

"Ohh, Adrikins~" Ah yes, here she was. She was in an outfit that honestly might've been attractive if it was anyone else, but she was just a friend, if even that.

"Oh, hi Chloe" I sounded cheerful but it was all rehearsed. I should have guessed she'd pick up on it, she's likely no stranger to that kind of thing. She frowned at me looked back at the crowd.

"Would you look at her? No sense of style at all, just pink this and pink that" She was obviously talking about Rose and Ali. It took me a moment to realise she was actually jealous, I nearly burst out laughing, but manages to contain it to a smile on my face. That fact, that fact that seemed so unlike Chloe, hit something in me.

I was about to say something, then I felt my father's hand on my shoulder, and saw the mayor nearby.

"Now you two, it's time to officially open the gala." Andre's voice was calm and practiced. The plan for the evening was that Andre and my father would give a speech in honour of the heroes, and hopefully they would turn up themselves. That part had slipped my mind, Chloe and I had to be by our fathers during the speech and speak up ourselves to commend their brave deeds. As the pair of leaders, one of fashion and one of the city, took the stage, the two of us stood behind them, smiling politely and watching the crowd. I could clearly make out Rose standing in the crowd, something about her brightness compared to the rest of the room made me feel almost proud of her. My eyes were drawn to the two at the podium as the whine of a microphone went through the room.

"I thank you all for coming here tonight, it means a lot to both of us." As I stared at the crowd, beaming 'proudly', I began to space out. I didn't need to be here really. I essentially slept through the speech, through my part too, and even when Ladybug turned up I just remained comatose. I didn't love her, Cat Noir did. For some reason, he wasn't here tonight, much to the disappointment of the crowd. It wasn't until after I'd left the stage and some touched my arm that I snapped out of it.

"Adrien, what was with you up there?" Chloe spun me to face her, her displeasure clear on her face.

"What do you mean?" I was completely oblivious. I didn't even remember what had happened.

"You were completely stiff across your entire speech! Lucky I was able to step in and wow the audience." She illustrated her point by extending and tensing her arms, going fully stiff.

"I…" I was honestly speechless. I didn't have anything to say.

"What is going _on_ with you? You've been spacing out all day." It was true, when I thought about it, I had been.

"I don't know" That was a lie. I did know. I paused to take a deep breath, making what I would later consider an odd decision. "Actually… I do know. I've been feeling off recently. Like I'm not who I am. Like I don't know who I am."

Her response surprised and pleased me more than I wanted to admit "So? If you don't like who you are, change it. It's easy." Despite her trademark sharpness, she had meant it. Her words echoed throughout my head as I wandered through the gala, nibbling on a piece of camembert I picked up. Maybe 10 minutes later the auction began, selling ice sculptures to raise money. One man, seemed offended when the mayor was forced to buy his abstract piece but the night passed uneventfully, at least for me. I wasn't really paying attention. By the time I got home, I was already asleep to the world.

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 **A/N:** Chloe giving emotional advice?! What is this?! I hear you ask. Honestly it somehow felt right. He's known Chloe for longer than anyone else in his class and is probably one of two who know remotely what he's going through.


	3. I'm Sorry

**A/N:** Well it took me a week but I finally understand the algorithm. Sorry to all those who are now only picking this up now due to my lack of understanding, I hope you all enjoy the 3 chapters I have for you. This one is a bit of a shift in mood from the first 2 so I'd be ready for a bit of a surprise.

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After the Gala. Midnight. The Seine. A man leans over the railing, his tears mixing into the freezing waters below. In his hand is a small chisel, some engraving on it too covered by his hand to read.

Across the city, in a darkened room illuminated only by a large round window, a man in a purple suit stands in the beam of light, staring out across the moonlit streets of Paris. He claps his hands over one of the many white moths surrounding him, releasing it soon after. It flew away, imbued with a purpose and a purple colouring.

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I lay awake, staring at my roof. The midnight moon shone through my room-sized square window. It had awoken me hours ago. There was so much stuff in here, it just occurred to me. My fencing trophies, my library upstairs, my basketball court, my skateboard ramps, my rock climbing wall, my arcade. Despite its massive size, this room was crowded with me. A shadow crossed across my body as I stared up, a chill accompanying it. My eyes darted to the window to see a glacial figure skating past. An Akuma. I was filled with joy, I got to be him again, which was quickly replaced with a sense of guilty dread. I reluctantly stood up and looked at my ring.

It was like some sick work of art. The glass pyramid surrounded by sculptures of clearest ice. As I approached I realised that the sculptures were frozen in masks of horror. Not just because of the pose they had taken as they had been turned to immobile water, but because of the distortion to their bodies. Whoever had done this had very strange perceptions of the human body. It looked like I was first on the scene. Whoever said black cats had bad luck? In the corner of my eyes, I noticed an arctic sheen on the entrance to the famous museum. Strong enough to keep most people, but not me. I twirled my staff and struck it exact centre, shattering it on contact.

"Hello…" My voice echoed throughout the chamber, resonating off more and more statues. I strolled through casually; the akuma wasn't nearby. I took the time to practice a few puns as I walked, following the trail of abstractions. Eventually I found myself staring at the back of the villain as he perfected his latest creation.

"Hope I'm not interrupting, you seem to be working on a rather _cool_ piece there." The villain spins around.

"Ahh, Cat Noir, I think it's time for you to chill out" He pointed his chisel at me and launched a blizzard-esque blast at me which I nimbly dodged. Got to get him out of here, find out what he wants.

"Catch me if you can!" Using my staff, I propelled myself fast out of the room. He was quite a fast villain it seemed, keeping an even distance behind me. I was enjoying myself as Cat Noir, taunting and teasing him as I ran, making plenty of puns on the way. Sadly, I became overconfident and tripped, cursing myself as I fell to find myself staring at his outstretched ice chisel as it began to glow. I prepared myself for the inevitable attack and my mind wandered to Adrien Agreste. If I went he would too, but did the world really need him? Luckily I didn't have time to answer this question as a familiar whizzing sound passed my ears, I opened my eyes to find the villain bound in black twine ending in a bright red spotted yo-yo. Then I saw her, framed against the full moon, beautiful as ever.

"Nice try akuma, but this kitty cat isn't yours to play with" She yanked him up and away from me but despite her strength he was able to break free.

"I don't have time to waste here!" He used a column of ice to jet away from the Louvre. I noticed a flicker in Ladybug's eyes, some kind of recognition.

"He's going to the Agreste Mansion! We have to stop him!" I leapt beside her.

"Why do you think he's going there?"

"Last night, an ice sculptor was dejected after his sculpture was not sold. The auction had been hosted by the Mayor and Gabriel Agreste, the first of who is already frozen. It must be him! Come on!" He was after my dad… No, Adrien Agreste's dad. I'm just a playful cat of the night. I watched my lady bound off in the direction of the Agreste Mansion.

As we arrived, I noticed the panicked expression on Ladybug's face. I'd never seen her so worried.

"What's wrong, milady?" I smiled at her as I said this, trying to calm her down. Panic didn't suit her

"Gabriel Agreste, he has a son. I don't want him to get hurt." She was serious. Deadly serious. Guess she didn't like kids getting hurt. Well, guess I didn't either, especially not that one.

We staked out the mansion for a while; we'd somehow beat the villain there. It wasn't difficult to tell when he was close however, his chill pervaded the very soul.

"Brrr… Can we go inside? This cat doesn't like the cold" I made a point of shivering.

"Not now, here he comes, now shush!" She readied her yo-yo in her hand, nodding in confirmation that a surprise attack would happen. The sharp, icicle covered figure strode up the drive, freezing and then smashing the gate silently. Just as silently two pairs of feet struck the ground behind him.

"There's no way you're getting in there" Ladybug spins her yo-yo in a shield. How did she do that? Just another amazement to add to the list.

"Not with that chilly attitude" I added, smiling as I readied my staff. The villain just huffed and let a blast of ice fly at the two of us. In a practiced movement after months of doing this, we roll aside and go at him from both sides, her binding him and me striking him. Despite our coordination, the coordination of lovers I like to think, his ice body was rock hard. He quickly freed himself and brushed us aside, approaching the door of the house, chisel outstretched. I was still recovering, unable to stop him. I witnessed a flash of red and black then heard a thud followed by a crack. Ladybug had punched the frozen freezer so hard his face cracked.

"You. Will. Not. Hurt. Adrien." Between each word was another attack, another punch, a kick to knock him aside, binding his arm with her yo-yo, then pulling him in again for another punch.

"Cat. Destroy him." Her sudden bluntness and fury shocked me so much I reverted back to just Adrien. Ladybug, she wanted to protect me this badly? Badly enough to be this violent? This wasn't the Ladybug I knew. I spent the rest of the fight in a daze, vaguely aware I used a cataclysm at some point. And was that a tire iron? I remained spaced-out even after the battle. There was a buzzing in my ear, repetitive and getting louder.

"Cat… Cat… Cat! Cat!" She slapped me, snapping me out of it. "What is going _on_ with you?"

"Uhh, nothing I'm fine… uhh… cat-some" I was pleased at first with the pun. Then I realised what I'd actually said thanks to her stupefied gaze. She pointed at my finger

"Are you gonna go?" She left that last word hanging. It took me a moment to realise what she meant. Why would I need to go? It's my house. Then I remembered I was still Cat to her. So I made what I thought were affirmative goodbye noises and left, not realising I had done so by entering my front door.

My room was overcrowded with me. I needed to get rid of someone. That was the conclusion I reached from tonight's escapade. And there was only one person I could afford to lose. I reached for my ring finger and slowly started to twist it off. As I did so, an outraged Plagg tried to stop me.

"Adrien what are you doing?" His voice was full of confusion and fear, and his eyes… I could see my own reflected in his, there was a tear in the corner of each, held there by sheer force of will. Those green eyes, they pleaded with me to stop. But I had to.

"I'm sorry Plagg." I felt the moment it left my finger, like there was some kind of spark. I tucked the ring into the original box it came from.

"I'm sorry."

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 **A/N:** Did I get you? Hopefully I did. Him giving up the ring was one of the things that I was 100% sure about since the beginning of this. That and a few other things. Now that I've figured out the algorithm, this is what I'm calling the 'official release', where I have more than a shitty 400 word intro at the top of the list. Leave a review, I could always use advice, and follow to see how it all pans out! Most of my efforts are on this right now, but I do have another fic idea involving Tikki, Plagg and Pollen which I'll do when she officially comes out. But for now, this is my focus


	4. Hurting

**A/N:** I lied. This wasn't my focus. I've been writing other things, cheating on this fic. Luckily she forgave me and let me get this chapter out. One more people, then it's finally over and I can return to sanity.

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A week. A long time when you think about it. 7 days. 168 hours. 10,080 minutes. 604,800 seconds. Each one felt like a whole day of its own. But today was the worst. She'd had to do it on her own, and I'd sat there watching while Cat Noir waited in a box in my room. I was sitting again now, on a bench at lunch break. I wasn't hungry. Like I could fill the pit in my stomach with food anyway. I became aware slowly that I wasn't alone.

"Why?" I nearly didn't recognise the voice. It was so layered with hurt and frustration that it seemed like someone else entirely. But no, it was her. The girl who knew.

"Why what?" I sounded guilty to me even. Why was I guilty? Cat Noir's the one who didn't show.

"Why weren't you there for her? She fought for you and you were nowhere to be seen. I- She could've been hurt." She visibly winced at these last few words, as if imagining her hero's pain. I should've known she wouldn't accept my denial at face value, but she didn't know the full truth.

"He's retired. He's not up to it anymore." And I couldn't afford him anymore. He was bad for me. Chloe was right, I had needed to change.

"He? You mean _you_. _You_ weren't there fighting and you're not pushing away that responsibility. I don't know what's going on in your head and I don't care, but it's no excuse for endangering her." She was wrong. It wasn't my fault. I'm Adrien Agreste, not Cat Noir. My blank expression upset her and she stormed off crying. It wasn't long before I felt two green holes being bored into my skull.

"What on Earth is wrong with you?! Marinette is over there, crying her eyes out, and she won't even tell me what's wrong. So you better fess up mister." Ever the protector, Alya was a better hero than I ever was.

"I can't tell you. This is between me and me." I turned away from her, my face a wildfire of shame.

"And obviously Marinette over there too. You have no idea how much that girl cares for you and you treat her like this?" Marinette… cared for me?

"I need to go" I got up and trotted off, staring at my designer shoes with their butterfly print.

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I heard the knock on my door, but I didn't see who it was.

"What is it Nathalie?" I said through tears of… tiredness. Yes, tiredness. How surprised was I to hear my father's voice. Not as surprised as I was at this words.

"Adrien, what's wrong? Mr Damocles says you weren't at the last two periods and you didn't go to fencing, chinese or your photoshoot. I thought you loved those things." He noticed my tears and came and crouched beside me. His actions, his visible love, shook me. It shook me enough to shake open the gates.

"I- I don't know what I like anymore. I feel like 6 different people all fighting for control. I- I feel like I'm standing on a tightrope, and I've never had great balance." That was Cat Noir who had that talent. My father laid a hand on my shoulder and stared into my red, raw eyes, a tear or two embedded in his own.

"Believe it or not, I know how you feel. I know what it's like to feel like I'm living two lives." I sniffled a bit and lean into him. Wrapping my arms around his shoulder like I hadn't done since mum disappeared.

"It's hurting people dad. And I don't know how to stop it." He picked me up and cradled me in his arms as I sobbed slowly.

"We can worry about that later, for now, you need sleep." I felt myself be layered onto my bed slowly as the soft mattress engulfed me. I curled up into a ball, tugging at the sheets and scrunching them in my hands. I didn't want to hurt anyone. I heard my father's footsteps pause before he leaves.

"No matter who you feel you are, remember, you are always my son. Always." The footsteps restarted and my door clicks shut, following them. My father's son. That idea floated tantalisingly just out of reach, blurring as my mind drifted slowly to sleep.

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 **A/N:** I was wrong, she didn't forgive me. I've been taken hostage by this story. It's doing it's own thing now. I wanted to write more for this chapter but sadly it wouldn't let me. On another note, thank you all so much for your support and reviews! I wanted to reply to some of you anon reviewers so badly but I couldn't! It makes me feel so great that people like my work, and if you think I could do something better, tell me, please. Chapter 5 will be out at some point in the future. Don't ask me when it's as up in the air as the miraculous airing schedule. I'm also working on what will probably be a one shot set 10 years from where it is now, where they just run into each other at a bar. Sounds boringer than it is, trust me. I'm also working on another little idea that's been cooking up, something a bit, shakespearean.


	5. The City of Lights was Dark

**A/N:** We're finally here, the last chapter. This is officially the longest thing I have ever written and I'm proud of it. I'd like to give a big thanks to all the people who've read this and all the followers and reviewers, feedback means so much to me. And without further adieu, The Finale.

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 **A brave face. That's what I needed. I needed to go out there with a brave face and face the day ahead. I had school, fencing, a photoshoot. One person living 3 people's lives. I needed to be as ready as I could. I wasn't. Not for what happened.**

I was holding my foil afore me, inspecting its blade. I felt like I had never seen it before. I swing it experimentally. It felt wrong. I had shed all that baggage last night, shed all that me. I felt happier, lighter. My backpack was empty and all I was carrying was myself. I barely heard the screams.

I coughed and a red splatter spun through the air. My hands were bound and I was on top of the eiffel tower, taken there against my will. I'd used to love seeing Paris from here, but that joy was lost with my requests for camembert. My heart pounded in my chest, I felt each Atria and Ventricle open and close. 1, 2 3, 4. Fear was unfamiliar. I had never truly experienced it. That was a lie. Once. A few years ago. When she disappeared. I had feared for her, for me, for where I would go. I never imagined that this was where. Where was she? The hero who was meant to save me from this villain. The villain who flew ever closer on wings, one white, one black.

There. In the distance. A figure of red against the blue-grey roofs of this City of Love. My heart slowed but the force of each beat grew. She was coming.

"You're out of luck. Ladybug's the lucky one today." I couldn't help the snide remark. Or the grin on my face when the villain was bound in that infinite string. It stayed there until our eyes met. They were filled with disapproval and displeasure. My grin collapsed in an instant, my heart practically stopping. The pain and guilt hit me and for one moment, I thought the tower had collapsed. I watched her, my breath shallow yet slow. She swung around, attacking the akuma from all sides with a determination I hadn't seen in her. She held the upper hand with a tenuous grip. Her whole demeanor had changed, she kept moving, never stopping. She never let them get near her. But most startling was her silence, she never said a word. Solitude had changed her, for better or for worse. She struck the villain hard, retrieving the oh so important object and crushing it in her fist. She never even used her lucky charm

"I'm stronger now. Tell Hawk Moth that." I felt myself whisked to the ground as all the damage was undone. My feet barely scraped the ground and I tumbled over, in tears. She didn't want to save me did she? I punched the ground and four spots of red made themselves known on my hand. I cradled it and began to trudge home. The Gorilla waited silently for me in my car but didn't seem to car when I dragged my feet slowly past. I walked along home in a straight line, contemplating what on Earth was wrong with me. Why? Why had she looked like that? Had her partner's absence made her this cynical? My arm slowly moved away from my fist and I began to simply hug myself. A trail of dark spots followed me home, pausing when I paused to tear my past smile from a wall. By the time I got home I was asleep on two feet. With eyes closed, I remembered falling into my pillow, defeated.

I woke up too late at night. The night sky was clouded and the the City of Light was dark. My eyes slowly adjusted to the gloom despite my wishes. I could see a circle on my desk, and on top a triangle. A plate of camembert. It stunk but I didn't block my nose. I just stared at it. It could've been anywhere been 2 minutes or 2 hours until I was snapped out of it. There was a commotion at my window, followed by some knocking. I could not believe what I saw. A regular pattern of black spots bent around a red suit, clinging to my window. Why was she here? To disapprove of me more? But why? What reason did she have? Even with this confusion I went to my window and opened it and she clambered in gracefully. Only she could clamber gracefully. She stood in front of me in a half crouch. Was she ashamed?

"I'm sorry" My throat felt like it closed up at this. "I was cruel to you today. You didn't deserve the rough way I treated you. Nobody does." She was. She was ashamed.

"But I need to know." A tear emerged in the corner of her eye, refracting and magnifying the tiny hexagons of her mask "Are you ok?"

My breath quickened, catching in my throat as I became slowly overwhelmed.

"What do you mean?" I was scared of her. Never meet your heroes they said.

"Oh you silly kitty." She reaches one hand to her face. It goes to the side of her mask. Was she… It came away with ease and too deep blue pinpricks stared at me with tears inside. I gasped and it hit me. Why she was so disappointed in me. Why it hurt. I'd abandoned her.

"I know you better than you think. And I can see when something's wrong. And something is very wrong." My legs buckled and I tumbled into her arms.

"I'm not him. I'm not Cat Noir. He's not me. I couldn't handle it. I couldn't handle so much me. There was too much. He wasn't me. I couldn't be him. I couldn't." Her arms embrace me softly and caringly, a faint warmth radiating from her.

"You're wrong. You are him. You're all of you and more. To me, you're the boy in my class who's nice to everyone. _Everyone_. You're the boy who spends his days getting better and better. Chinese. Fencing. Modelling. And as of a week and a bit ago, I found out you're also the boy who fights beside me and cracks puns that I hate and love and cares truly for the people around him. You're the boy who I don't believe is like this. The boy that everything suits except pain. You're Adrien Agreste, and you're amazing, and I don't want you to hurt anymore." Her words sunk deep into my ears. The message behind them. I wasn't 10 people living one person's life. I was one person, living a massive life. And I wasn't alone. Ladybug, Marinette, the girl in my class who was always so shy and nervous who was also the greatest hero I'd ever met. She was a baker, a fashion designer, a gamer. Both of us, nay, everyone was many things. My heart practically glowed with a renewed sense of self. I was me.

 **"** **Thanks, Marinette." I left my arms held around her as I sat in my room, full of all my favourite things.**

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 **A/N:** I think I spent over a week on those last two paragraphs, writing and rewriting over and over. Oddly enough, this is going up the same day as The Dark Owl so the reveal is kinda fitting. I'd like to give another thanks to all my readers but especially my English teacher and user SilverHeartSP who both gave me valuable feedback all along the way. Now, I was originally supposed to be taking a break from writing now that I've finished this but all of a sudden my head is bursting with ideas. Something about Tikki and Plagg (cause of Dark Owl, I can't be the only one can I?) and also another idea, probably a one shot, dealing with Marinette recognising the feeling of Adrien's hand. Along with that I also have more stuff for Alya's Playlist planned (which I may or may not get round to) but also more plans for my Nouveau Paris timeline (which I recommend checking out in this story here:  s/12742964/1/The-One-That-Got-Away ). If there's any of these you like and think I should focus on, tell me in a review. But for now, G out!


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